The experience in training health professionals in the field of rehabilitation began in 1957, with the creation of the Physiotherapy and Occupational Therapy Courses and, later, the Speech Therapy Course, in 1962.
ESSALCOITÃO is a pioneering school, with proven results. Santa Casa da Misericórdia de Lisboa, as the Establishing Entity, constitutes the main guarantee of the stability and quality of the educational project achieved, but it is its former students, by proving their excellent qualifications and entrepreneurship on a daily basis in the job market, who perpetuate the prestige of ESSAlcoitão. The quality of teaching has been recognized by External Evaluators, within the scope of the evaluation process of higher education institutions, as well as by employers, who value the competence and professionalism of their former students. One of the School's strengths lies in the quality of its own teaching staff, which integrates professional experience and academic competence.